War Diaries of a Little Englander.
Being the toy soldier, wargaming and kit bashing ramblings of a middle-aged Englishman.

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Greetings!

'A gaping silken dragon,/Puffed by the wind, suffices us for God./We, not the City, are the Empire's soul:/A rotten tree lives only in its rind.'

Tuesday, 27 March 2012

K.u.K. and gallant little Belgians, in 20mm

My posts on Austria-Hungary appear to have struck a chord. I have yet to fight my way into the loft to dig out my Tradition 54mm K.u.K. fellows, but I have dug into the drawer of lost causes and found some figures that I painted in 1984/5. At that time, I was an impecunious student (not a commoner) of the noble University of Oxford, and could ill afford money for tin soldiers, so I only possess a few of these Great War figures in 20mm:

They are, as far as I remember, by Imperial figures, and some years later, as a slightly better off school master, I discovered, to my regret, that the company was no more. The moral of that tale for war gamers everywhere is 'buy quickly, and in bulk'! The figures were all early Great War period, rather limited in poses, with poorly rendered weapons, but very nicely done uniforms. What is also interesting looking at these figures now is how painting styles and techniques change:

All painted in Humbrol 'Authentics' (that much, much loved range), but with no washes, or highlighting; yet I remember being rather pleased with my efforts. Also from the Imperial range were some of Belgium's finest from 1914:

Line infantry on the left, Carabiniers on the right, with a solitary Guide following up.

In response to my previous K.u.K. themed post, the Duke of Tradgardland recommended an author whom I had not heard of, and a novel about the Imperial Navy in 1914-18. It is, I am pleased to say ordered through Warwick Books, one of the finest independent book sellers known to me, and I shall have the book by tomorrow. Sadly, the English language cover of A Sailor of Austria by John Biggins is not nearly as marvellous as this German language edition:

Finally, before I sign off, let me mention an excellent middle-aged man's book on Trieste by the wonderful Welsh heroine, Jan Morris, Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere (Faber & Faber, 2001). A book for savouring, late at night, when dark thoughts gather in the corner of one's rooms.

6 comments:

Sadly, I was unable to create sufficient forces to contest the field of glory. Subsequently, I assembled what, for me, were vast ACW armies in 15mm (over 1,000 figures) which fought many a contest using adapted Featherstone rules (I am of that generation).

I love her book on Venice.So small scale ww1 is upon the cards? I too have been tempted by 1914 in 20mm/28mm. Splendid chaps by the by.I picture you painting them to the sound of bells amid the dreaming spires...I do hope you enjoy the novel.Keep up the search for the Tradition chaps I say!

There are so nice little soldiers there and I like seeing the way figures used to be painted and I am sure I can find some of mine to. Styles change and simple style will come back again and some may argue it has with dips and quickshades.

Quotation of the moment

'In a sense, nothing in life is planned - or everything is - because in the dance every step is ultimately the corollary of the step before; the consequence of being the kind of person one chances to be.'

Anthony Powell, The Acceptance World (A Dance to the Music of Time), 1955.

Cpt. Front

About Me

New Men-At-Arms

Not out until February 2018, but order your copy early - you know it makes sense!

NOW IN PAPERBACK!!!

The Home Guard - 'This is likely to be the standard reference book on the subject for many years to come'; Bernard Lowry, Fortress Study Group.

A Vanished Ideology Essays on the Jewish Communist Movement in the English-Speaking World

Yiddish-speaking, English-speaking, Jews in the Communist movement. With a chapter on British Jews, ethnicity and class, by Al Front.

When Jews had a place on the Left.

The Labour Party is sunk in a mess of anti-Semitism, but it was not always thus:

Alf R. Ont on the wireless

Click on the image and scroll to 01:05:23 for the dulcet tones of Mr Ont, talking about women in the Home Guard.

Women in the Home Guard

From The Conversation, 5th February, 2016. Active, patriotic British women to the fore...

NEW BIOGRAPHY of 'FLYING' FAY TAYLOUR

277 pages of thrills and spills. 'Fanatical Fay Taylour', the greatest woman motor sports champion yet. A speed fiend on race tracks across the world, and a political activist who was banned from the USA, and interned in the UK. Member of the ultra-right underground in 1940s London and Dublin, later an Irish republican and supporter of Castro. Click image for a FREE ,yes, FREE, Pdf version provided by the University of Warwick.

Evolution and change in politics

A review of a new history of what was once a notable element of political allegiance among the Jewish diaspora. (Clink on the image for free link).

Germany calling...

The woman who recruited 'Lord Haw Haw' to the Berlin wireless. Socialist, Bolshevik, National Socialist, enemy broadcaster. (From The Historian 119; click on image for Pdf)

BBC Radio 4: Red Clydeside, Decoy Defences and Invasion panic

More Radio 4 'Making History' rambling - from 20th November 2012 (click on the image for link)

'The Land of My Dreams'

British Great War literary combatants and their writing about the war and home. A Pdf of an article from Cultural & Social History, vol. 8, no: 2, June 2011. (Click on image for link).

British Jews & the Communist Party of Great Britain

More reading for the VBCW enthusiast, not to mention the discerning reader (click on image for link). From Socialist History, vol.12, no: 41, September 2012

BBC Radio 4: Speed, women, and fascism

Listen to my dulcet tones, talking about 'Flying' Fay Taylour on BBC Radio 4's Making History (click on the image for link)

'Fay Taylour: a dangerous woman in sport and politics'

A must for the VBCW gamer - the most successful woman motor sport ace ever and a fascist. Click on image for journal link, an open access Pdf will eventually be available.

The Armourer magazine, March/April 2012

The true daughters of Britannia who joined the Home Guard

Political internment without trial, 1940 style

Fascists, nazis, and the IRA interned. Click on image for back issue of Britain At War, issue 46, Feb 2011

George Blake, literary Scot in the Great War

The Great War fiction of the veteran, George Blake - from Cencrastus no:67. Out of print, but I can send a photocopy, if you wish.

For the VBCW war gamer

In History Scotland, March/April 2011; click on image for free Pdf.

Fifth Column panic!

Buy a back issue - all that is left

The incomparable generation of 1914

from The Historian no:110, Summer 2011, magazine of The Historical Association; click on image for Pdf.

BBC Radio 4: Stand By the King!

Listen to my words of historical wisdom about the BUF in Norfolk on Radio 4's 'Making History'. Click on image for link.

One I did earlier...

Musso and the RSI

Fascism in Scotland

From the Scottish Historical Review, volume 87 (2) 2008 (click on the image for Pdf link)

Another Home Guard one...

A 50 page booklet, now out of print, but available as a pdf from Warwick University - click on the image for the link.